The main character is a 6th grader with cerebral palsy that is wheelchair bound. She experiences a school shooting where her teacher and some other younger students are killed. Her mom is the school nurse, so they have to learn how to cope with this grief together. It is a beautifully written novel in verse that I would recommend for grades 4 and up.

Incredibly powerful novel-in-verse written from the point of view of a late elementary school student who survives a school shooting! The subtle, but necessary changes in time across sections of the book are easy to access for middle-grade readers and the tragedy is written in a clear, but careful manner appropriate for the intended age range. A story of death, grief, growth, and the wide variety of emotions the main character rides before and after the horrible, fateful day at her school, this is one not to be missed.

Well written, well thought out, and moving, "Please Pay Attention" is far less depressing than it has any right to be. The subject matter is dreadful, important and terrifying, but the characters at the center of this novel are solid, supportive and sensitive. I expected to be heartbroken, but I finished the novel hopeful, and engaged, which I think means the author achieved their purpose.

This is one of the most gorgeous novels in verse I have ever read. It was heart wrenching my beautiful and an incredible story.

content warnings: school shooting, grief, ableism

there is a before and after for bea coughlin, an eighth grader with cerebral palsy. before the school shooting that took the lives of her teacher and classmates, and after, when she has to figure out how to keep going. as she learns to heal from this traumatic event, she finds the bravery to demand change.

with how prevalent school shootings, and discussion around them, are, many of our discussions leave out disabled people. this is true for other emergencies, too; there are almost never solid plans to get disabled people to safety should a fire or severe weather happen. this is something bea reflects on a lot throughout this book. as a wheelchair user, she felt helpless during lockdown, when her classmates were taking cover and she needed help. when she finds equine therapy, she begins to find the courage to speak up against school shootings and how disabled people are often disregarded in our society. this was a novel in verse, and i thought that was a great choice. bea had a lovely voice. i highly recommend this book.

I really enjoyed this book. It was a very quick read. It only took me a day. This was a very emotional book and does involve a school shooting so it won’t be for everyone but it is so well written. You become very attached to the characters and you want everything to turn out ok for them. Even though you know it won’t. Not for everyone. The author does a fantastic job describing the scene and what the main character is feeling. The emotions are high and the feelings are raw. It is a tough book to read at times but it is also worth it.

If all the adults who needed to read this did, and then effected the change that is entirely within their power to make, we would never need another book like this. In the meantime, shamefully, there are tens of thousands of children in the US (more?) who will benefit from this story, having in common with our heroine the history of surviving a school shooting—something no child should ever need to face. This is what we call a preventable problem. Aren’t there enough things that are out of our control in this world already? I read this story with an overwhelming feeling of sorrow and a deep appreciation for Sumner’s gift: her ability to write through her own grief, crafting a moving and compelling story that is also a necessary call to action.

Thank you for this ARC.
The challenges and emotions are strong in this graphic novel. Bea is the main character, living her life in school and then a shooting takes place. You have to be of this age to fully make the connection that matters. I would definitely recommend this to middle school and high school students. This is a deep book where the writer knocks down walls and makes us, the reader have these open conversations.

Disclaimer: I received an e-arc of this book. Thanks! All opinions are my own.

Book: Please Pay Attention

Author: Jamie Sumner

Book Series: Standalone

Rating: 4/5

Diversity: Cerebral Palsey MC who uses a wheelchair, Other disabled characters, MC has a Guardian, Gay couple characters

Recommended For...: Middle Grade Readers, Realistic Fiction, Contemporary, Poetry, Disability, School Shooting, Grief, PTSD

Publication Date: April 15, 2025

Genre: MG Contemporary

Age Relevance: 12+ (school shooting, vague HP reference, lots of Christianity, parental death mentioned, death, blood gore, grief, PTSD)

Explanation of CWs: The book revolves around the before, during, and aftermath of a school shooting from the perspective of a child. The school is Christian and there are a lot of mentions about Christianity. Parental death is mentioned in one comment. There is blood gore and death shown and mentioned in the book. There are scenes revolving around grief and PTSD.

If This Was a Taylor Swift Song: Only the Young

Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers

Pages: 240

Synopsis: There is a Before and an After for eighth grader Bea Coughlin. Before the shooting at her school that took the lives of her classmates and teacher and After, when she must figure out how to grieve, live, and keep rolling forward. But as her community rallies in a tidal wave of marches and speeches and protests, Bea can’t get past the helplessness she felt in her wheelchair as others around her took cover. Through the help of therapeutic horseback riding, Bea finally begins to feel like herself again. And as she heals, she finds her voice and the bravery to demand change.

Review: Overall, I thought that the book was really well done. I loved that the book was from the perspective of a child but also I think that making the main character disabled added another context to the story, like a look into how much more difficult navigating a school shooting is when you're disabled. I did like the little mentions about how inaccessible the world was to the MC especially after the shooting. Everything from not being able to use the stairs and having to wait for the elevator while in the middle of the scene, to being pushed by an officer who also refuses to listen to her about what she needs, and to even having to figure out how to hide while in a wheelchair, whether that be throwing herself out of the chair and crawling or making do with what she can. I also liked that this book was written for the author's friend who was the head of The Covenant School in Nashville before she was killed during a school shooting, I thought this was a very touching tribute to them and other school shooting victims. I liked the story overall, I liked that the book had a lot of action steps for protesting and therapy and I really liked that there wasn't a preachy message from a religious perspective about the event. I lastly think this is the type of media that might help build up a generation that will stand against easily allowing school shootings.

The only things that I knock the book for is the one vague HP reference that wasn't needed in today's works and that I thought the book was a bit hard to read in a couple of places, but that last bit is more of a knock on me because I struggle with verse-told books.

Verdict: It was really good! I recommend it.

Please Pay Attention hits you like a ton of bricks. It’s a profound novel-in-verse that makes you look beyond the “typical” student experience during a school shooting.

The story unfolds from Lucy’s first-person point of view. Born with cerebral palsy, Lucy uses a wheelchair. It’s something that already makes her different, and when the shooting happens, she can’t get down when the rest of the class huddled on the floor. After, she can’t let go of the moment, can’t let go of her teacher’s death, can’t let go of not being there for the “little” from kindergarten that she mentors.

Please Pay Attention is loosely based on the shooting at The Covenant School in Nashville in early 2023. Author Jamie Sumner was friends with the head of school there who was killed. Please Pay Attention is Sumner’s call to action.

Sumner’s respectful treatment of the subject is heartfelt and thoughtful. While not gratuitous, she does not shy away from the actual shooting. In the moment, Sumner focuses on the fear, confusion and desperation to find loved ones. Later, those feelings shift to profound sadness, anxiety and anger. And through it all is a calming layer of hope that helps pull readers through Lucy’s experience.

Please Pay Attention is a quick read — I finished it in a few hours. It’s a story of empathy and resiliency and it’s a book that I wish never had to be written. As a mom, it both broke my heart and made me angry. Nonetheless, it’s a beautiful and necessary read.

Technically this book is well-written and engaging, keeping the reader going along with Bea as she experiences and recovers from a school shooting. Content-wise, this book is so powerful and and important and emotional and everyone should read it. We talk about gun violence and shootings all the time (unfortunately) but I don't think I've ever heard anyone talk about what it means to be disabled in a situation like that. I appreciate the obvious care that was given to this story, especially knowing Sumner has personal experience with losing someone in a school shooting- the fact that she was able to write this is, frankly, incredible.

Having said all that, I think everyone should read this and I think it is appropriate for kids and adults alike.

Bea is an eighth grade student, at a small school that pairs each middle school student with an elementary school student; her Buddy is a girl named Josie, who has emotional problems that make going to school difficult. Bea is doing her best to help Josie, and Josie seems to be getting better - not so nervous about being at school.

Bea was born prematurely, which caused cerebral palsy, and adopted by the NICU nurse who cared for her after her birth - who took a job as the school nurse at Bea's school, so she could be nearby if Bea needed her. One day, Bea needed her more than ever, when a shooter entered her school - and Bea, in her wheelchair, couldn't get down when the rest of the class huddled on the floor. She finally did manage to get down, but only after everything was all over. Except it wasn't over; the "After" had only just begun.

This novel, based loosely on the shooting at The Covenant School in Nashville in early 2023, is written in blank verse, which highlights the scattered nature of Bea's thoughts during and after the shooting. It starts ten days before the shooting, and continues for six weeks after, taking the reader through Bea's experiences and reactions, her inability to deal with what happened, and her mother's attempts to help her, which include horse riding therapy, for both the trauma and her cerebral palsy.

This story hit home for me, in ways I hadn't expected. As a retired middle school special education teacher, I've taught students in wheelchairs - students who, like Bea, couldn't get down from their chairs for drills, who would need to be hidden in a corner, behind a cupboard, or anywhere else they might be less conspicuous should a shooting actually occur, because they couldn't get out of their chairs without help, and one teacher (and maybe an aide) couldn't get the child down safely while also getting the rest of the class safely onto the floor, in the corner not visible from the doorway. These students, and their parents, are universally terrified about the additional risks they face - not just in a school shooting, but also for other emergencies; there's nothing quite like being told to park a student in a wheelchair in view of a large window in case of a fire, and leave her there, because it's not safe to use the elevator, and her spastic cerebral palsy would make it dangerous to try to carry her down the stairs (yes, that really happened to me - and more disturbingly, to an 8th grade student).

This is a difficult book to read, because while it is fiction, it is an issue that is very near to the thoughts of staff and students. It would be valuable for students who have survived such an event, and also for any child who was part of an event they couldn't control, and who feels responsible for the outcome. I would suggest that, if it is read by a child who has experienced this type of trauma, it should be read with an adult the child can discuss the novel with. For children reading it alone, who have not experienced similar trauma, I recommend it for students in middle school and older, both because of the content, and because reading blank verse can be very difficult for people not accustomed to it.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book provided by Netgalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

WOW! Jamie Sumner does an incredible job of handling a very sensitive topic. A school shooting occurs and Bea is in a wheelchair...what is she to do? The tragedy, the process of healing, the grief, the small moments. I was not prepared for this book, but know how necessary it is. Kids need to read this book, adults need to read this book just as much. Tragically beautiful.

Please Pay Attention follows Bea as she navigates the grief of a school shooting. The book takes us through the days and hours leading up to the tragedy and the healing that happens after.

Bea is an eighth grader with cerebral palsy who struggles to overcome the feelings of helplessness she had as her classmates took cover while she sat in her wheelchair when a gunman opened fire in her school. Jamie Sumner painted such a vivid picture of the fear, grief, and healing Bea undergoes throughout the book.

Written in verse, Please Pay Attention, was heavy and hopeful in the way that only middle grade can be. This one of those middle grade books that I would recommend to absolutely everyone!

Thank you to Netgalley, Simon & Schuster, and Libro.fm for the advanced copies of this book.

“Please Pay Attention” - Jamie Sumner

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

When the shooting took place at Sandy Hook Elementary School on December 14, 2012, my son was 6 years old and in kindergarten. This shooting shook me to the core and literally broke everything inside of me. 13 years later, I still remember those beautiful innocent 6 and 7 year olds who lost their lives that day due to gun violence, along with the school staff; which included a Special Education teacher. My daughter at the time was only 4 and was not yet in school, however, she is special needs and while reading “Please Pay Attention” I was able to relate to Bea, who has Cerebral Palsy. While my daughter has a different condition, children with special needs react differently under certain circumstances and the thought of my child being in a room feeling helpless, not knowing what to do, breaks my heart. I’d be lying if I said I never worry about there being an active shooting at my children’s school. Every time I hear about a school shooting, my mind goes straight to my daughter’s EC classroom, because they’re considered an easy target and it frighten’s me, especially knowing the location of her classroom from the outside. It breaks my heart every time a parent loses a child to school gun violence, because this could have been my child/children. My heart goes out to all parents/families who’ve lost children and/or loved due to gun violence at their school; a place where they should be safe.

“Please Pay Attention” is a children’s beautiful novel dedicated to Katherine Koonce who put her life on the line for the children of The Covenant School on March 27, 2023 when unfortunately, herself along with 3 students and 2 additional staff lost their lives to gun violence. The novel follows the life of a young girl named Bea who has Cerebral Palsy, who lives as best of a normal life as she can, until there’s an active shooting at her school. Afterwards, the novel follows her grief process and finally her healing process. The novel allows you to feel what Bea is experiencing and why she feels the way she does, especially being a child who is special needs and uses a wheelchair. She goes through so many emotions throughout the novel, but grief takes times and there are many ways to heal that brokenness that’s being felt inside your soul; which then it takes time to heal and get back to where you once were.

Thank you NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the eARC of Jamie Sumner “Please Pay Attention.”

This book was beautiful, heartbreaking, and everything in between. It calls attention to the important issue of gun violence in our schools. It’s become so prolific that my child is homeschooled so she doesn’t have to deal with a school shooting. I wish some lawmakers would read this important story and get a clue finally.

Bea has already had her share of challenges and is living a good life in a comfortable routine when tragedy strikes at her school. Confined to her wheelchair due to cerebral palsy, the 6th grader must wrestle with the helplessness she feels in the aftermath. This novel in verse is poignant and realistic with lots of heart. A gentle way to approach a very scary subject. I do recommend it with a caveat - Be sure to read it yourself when you add it to your collection, so you’re prepared to discuss it with your students.

I have always felt that books and other media surrounding school shootings are important, so when I found this book, I gravitated towards it. Please Pay Attention does not disappoint. Bea has cerebral palsy and uses a wheelchair, and when she survives a school shooting, she learns to process all of her emotions and move forward in her own way. This book is a fast read since it is written in verse, but the impact of the book will, I'm sure, be felt long after people finish reading.

5/5 stars

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free ARC in exchange for my opinion and review!

I've read several books about school shootings and none of them are easy to read. This one made me think about things I'd never considered before - being an able bodied person. How terrifying it would be to be in Bea's position.

This book was powerful and had just enough of everything to know that she'll be all right but she'll never be the same.

Rating: 4/5 Stars
Pub Date: 4/15
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This made my heart race for the fear that must go through the children's but also the parents' minds. As a mom of a toddler who will soon enough be school aged, this is one of my biggest fears.
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This is a quick read as this is written in verse. I think it's a very important book for middle grade readers to read. This deals with acceptance of disabilities in many different forms. In this case it focuses on PTSD and the therapy for it but also being wheelchair bound. The idea of acceptance but also finding that outlet to express those big feelings is super important and I think that this was a great book that shows middle graders exactly how to do that.
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I read this in a matter of one sitting. It's a super-fast read and very impactful. It's one that I will be thinking about for a long time. Be sure to check this one out! Huge thank you to NetGalley, Jamie Sumner and Simon and Schuster Publishing for the eARC in exchange for my honest review.